Said The Whale, Royal Teeth

The Sun and the Sea, Ross Christopher

Said The Whale

Said The Whale formed in 2007 as a collaboration between songwriters Ben Worcester and Tyler Bancroft. The pair's debut EP, Taking Abalonia, featured sunny west coast indie pop, with breezy harmonies, shimmering guitars, and lyrical tributes to their home city of Vancouver. In 2008, the album was rereleased as Howe Sounds/Talking Abalonia, featuring seven additional tracks that stretched the band's stylistic palate to include bubblegum folk ("The Light Is You"), thundering hard rock ("Last Tree Standing") and gentle ukulele ballads ("The Real of It"). After several personnel changes, the group settled upon a five-piece lineup that includes bassist Nathan Shaw, drummer Spencer Schoening, and keyboardist Jaycelyn Brown. The quintet embarked upon a rigorous touring schedule, crossing Canada numerous times and landing high profile gigs at V-Fest 2008 in Calgary and the nationally televised Canada Day celebration on Parliament Hill.

Royal Teeth

Royal Teeth's six members come from three cities across Southern Louisiana, a state known for its colossal musical output over the centuries. Now residing in New Orleans, their beat-centric sound is a technicolor addition to the legacy of Louisiana. The band could not be happier with their new home at Dangerbird, saying, "We are beyond excited to be a part of the Dangerbird family. It feels great to be part of a team that we know really cares and wants to see us succeed. We look forward to an amazing year!"

Of the signing, CEO and Founder of Dangerbird Records, Jeff Castelaz shares, "I love New Orleans. My wife, Jo Ann Thrailkill, is from there, and we spend a lot of time in the city. For years, I've wanted to sign a band from New Orleans -- to raise the Dangerbird flag there, to show our solidarity with the city." Castalez continues, "On Halloween night, we got invited to see this band Royal Teeth at a little venue just outside the French Quarter. As soon as they hit the stage I got that special feeling inside, and I knew they were the band that would allow us to put our stamp on the city's musical lineage."

Since that game-changing Halloween night, Royal Teeth has taken Louisiana by storm. Not only have they played packed shows in New Orleans and Lafayette, the latter of which saw the band sharing a bill with Mute Math, but they've also spread their reach to cities such NYC for last year's CMJ Festival, This winter the band won Nikon's "Creative Invite", awarding them a free trip to Austin for SXSW where they performed alongside Fun. Playing an additional two showcases, Royal Teeth also secured the attention of CNN at SXSW who stumbled upon the band courtesy of Twitter, the discovery resulting in a special session for CNN.com.

On "Act Naturally," the vocal duo of Gary Larsen and Nora Patterson provide heartfelt lyrics as the musicians travel through lavish, synth-infused soundscapes, boasting a brand all to itself that's not quite "dance pop" and not quite electronic. Leadoff track "Wild" finds Patterson's crystalline vocal hooks bounding in joyous romps over Larsen's grounded narrative. The tune starts the EP like a warning siren, and it doesn't let go from there. The catchy tune gained rapid traction in early 2012, launching Royal Teeth into the spotlight as the song found its way into a Canadian Buick commercial in addition to Fox featuring the song in its winter promotion.

Also on the EP is the band's bold rendition of The Knife's 2003 hit "Heartbeats" which sounds like a long-lost New Wave hit from the early '80s, bubbling over with dance floor pulses and thick kick drum echoes. Royal Teeth effortlessly makes this familiar song its own without having to radically reinvent the style of the track or jeopardize the character of the band.

The Sun and the Sea

When The Graduate disbanded we decided that we still wanted to keep writing music together. These seven songs are all instrumental demos that were recorded by us over the course of the past several months. Any money that is donated will go back into us producing more music. Currently, we have a few other projects in the works as well, but the four of us plan to keep making music together.

Ross Christopher

Not since the emergence of John Popper and Blues Traveler in the early 1990's has an artist successfully brought a non-traditional instrument to the forefront. Following in the same trail-blazing footsteps is ROSS CHRISTOPHER, an artist that plucks the electric violin from complete obscurity and places it front and center, holding down main melodic duties in a forward-thinking alternative rock sound.

ROSS CHRISTOPHER is "intensely original," creating gritty acoustic textures and delivering them with confidence and zeal. Clearly influenced by groups such as Dave Mathews Band, Radiohead, Led Zeppelin, and U2, ROSS CHRISTOPHER weaves intricate sonic textures while telling stories accumulated along life's long, winding road. Resonating with questions, intimacy, faith, love, and tales of growth and transition, the lyrics are ubiquitous and speak to the human experience. With songs arranged to pop-perfection, it's only a matter of time before ROSS CHRISTOPHER rises to the top of the charts.
Response to ROSS CHRISTOPHER has been immediate, and the most recent album entitled "Act Alive" has been received with rave reviews from both critics and fans. It has landed RC on bills with nationally touring groups such as Guster, James Taylor, Tom Petty, Gavin DeGraw, Kenny Chesney, The Wallflowers, The Black Crowes, and Carlos Santana, which has also helped him perfect the live show for which he has become notorious. Live ROSS CHRISTOPHER concerts are known for gripping electric-violin solos, seamless guitar work, tight percussive grooves, and intense melodies, all of which are performed with passion and sincerity.